Your Moment In The Sun
All the BBQ fodder including too many hot dogs, a new meaning to "long drive” and athletes’ sad meals inside the bubble.
Happy 244th Birthday America. Here’s everything you need for your holiday weekend small talk.
Sunscreen required,
The Last Night’s Game Team
Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest
Saturday brings us fireworks, cocktails and binge eating. Well maybe not you but the participants in the Nathan’s Famous Hot Dog Eating Contest will be attempting to break the record of 74 hot dogs (and buns) in 10 minutes set by 12-time champion Joey “Jaws” Chestnut. In a move no one saw coming, yesterday it was announced that New Jersey, Colorado and New Hampshire have legalized betting on this competitive eating contest. The new indoor, air-conditioned environment is conducive to Chestnut beating his record but will he “chipmunk” or have a reverse of fortune? You can bet on it.
Want to be the hit of your BBQ, check out the five things you need to know about this Fourth of July tradition that might make you vomit. (Also, we explain chipmunking, etc. – don’t try this at home).
Overtime
The call for the Washington Redskins (NFL - National Football League) to change their team name, which has long been considered derogatory toward Native Americans, has been happening for as long as we can remember. Now the movement has more traction than ever with stadium naming rights sponsor FedEx and PepsiCo joining the long list of companies rallying for the team to change its name. Yesterday, Nike pulled all of its Redskins gear off its site. The team has also been in talks to relocate its stadium to a piece of federal land, which doesn’t look likely unless they change their name. IT’S A MATTER OF TIME
Sideline stat
Many Americans are hitting the road this holiday weekend because they felt flying commercial was a bit too risky. Due to COVID, the PGA Tour (Professional Golfers Association) has made private jets available for players to get from tournament to tournament, but then there’s golfer Viktor Hovland who is giving a new meaning to long drive. Fueled by as many as six Red Bulls and heavy metal music, Hovland has opted to drive between tournaments vs. fly – logging 3,000 miles over four different PGA Tour stops. PUT THE PEDDLE TO THE (HEAVY) METAL
Coaches’ corner
If they say a man’s stomach is the way to his heart, there’s about to be mutiny in Disney World. Ahead of the MLS is Back Tournament (Major League Soccer), the players’ have taken to social media to share their less than desirable and expensive meals from their Disney World bubble, comparing them to something from the Frye Festival. The NBA (National Basketball Association) will join MLS and finish their season on Disney World properties starting at the end of the month. YOUR KID’S CAFETERIA WANTS ITS FOOD BACK
What to watch
Drivers start your engines because F1 (Formula One) season begins on Sunday in picturesque Austria after the global sport was put on hold due to COVID. Team Mercedes, led by six-time world champion Lewis Hamilton - the only Black driver on the circuit - made a surprise announcement this week, announcing that it will debut an inclusive paint scheme. Also arriving this week ahead of the race, F1 boss Bernie Ecclestone, 89, welcomed his fourth child, Ace. WATCH FOR THE EUROPEAN SCENERY, STAY FOR THE RACING
What Are The Chances?
How a shoe is shaking up the sports world, who's driving for a change and long-lost twins?
Life is full of coincidences so take matters into your own hands by being armed with the sports knowledge to join the conversation.
So you’re saying there’s a chance?
The Last Night’s Game Team
COLLEGE BASKETBALL
The biggest name in college basketball, Duke’s Zion Williamson blew it in front of a record rivalry game crowd that included former president Barack Obama. Williamson blew out his shoe and possibly his knee. Coincidentally, Nike’s stock dropped after the tragedy, although that may or may not have been related to the issues people were having with their self-lacing shoes. AND YOU THOUGHT GETTING YOUR HEEL STUCK IN A SUBWAY GRATE WAS BAD
OVERTIME
A nine-year-old girl has decided to take matters into her own hands. After losing while playing a MLB-licensed (Major League Baseball) game at Chuck E. Cheese, the game taunted her when it said “there’s always softball.” She was upset because it made softball seem like a bad sport so she wrote the game manufacturer, MLB and Chuck E. Cheese. Her letter has already sparked change. MAKING THINGS HAPPEN
SIDELINE STAT
Two minor league baseball players are making people do a double take. They’re both named Brady Feigl, both are 6’4” pitchers, both have red hair and wear thick rimmed glasses. The only difference is they play for different teams. They decided to take a DNA test to see if they were long-lost twins but despite the anticipation, they’re not. WHAT ARE THE CHANCES?
COACHES’ CORNER
A handful of NASCAR (National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing) drivers including Chase Elliott will wear special DESI9N TO DRIVE shoes in this weekend’s race. The shoes were designed by children at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta and they’ll be auctioned off post-race to benefit the organization’s summer camp. DRIVING FOR CHANGE
WHAT TO WATCH
The Academy Awards are this weekend and it's a perfect excuse to relax and watch Oscar winning movies. If you need some suggestions, here are five Academy Award-winning sports movies. AND THE OSCAR GOES TO...
5 Women Leading The Way In Sports
In celebration of International Women’s Day tomorrow, we bring you five women shattering the glass ceiling.
In celebration of International Women’s Day tomorrow, we bring you five women shattering the glass ceiling.
Like a boss,
The Last Night’s Game Team
Five Women Leading The Way In Sports
1. Team U.S.A. women’s hockey almost didn’t make it to the 2018 Winter Olympics because they were holding out for equal treatment. Part of the negotiations included equal pay, same equipment and per diems as their male counterparts. They were victorious in their negotiations and then backed it up by winning the gold. Not that it's a contest, but in the 2018 Winter Olympics the women on Team U.S.A. won more gold medals than the men. We all win!
2. In 1977, Janet Guthrie paved the way in racing, becoming the first woman to earn a starting spot in both the Indianapolis 500 (Indy Car Racing) and the Daytona 500 (NASCAR – National Association For Stock Car Auto Racing). Danica Patrick took Guthrie’s record a step further, as the first woman to win an IndyCar race and pole position (i.e. the best spot to start the race) in the Daytona 500. While Patrick has retired from NACSAR, she will drive the last race of her career at the Indianapolis 500 in May.
3. Ronda Rousey was told by the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) execs that there women would "never" be in the UFC. A year later, she proved them wrong as she stepped into the octagon. Since then the women’s category has exploded with women even battling it out as the main event. Never say never.
4. Following in the footsteps of the greats, Billie Jean King and Althea Gibson, Serena Williams has amassed a list of titles and records throughout her tennis career. She recently added a new one to her resume, mom. The G.O.A.T. (Greatest Of All Time) has long stood up for equity through education and stars in a new, powerful Nike ad with the message that there’s “no wrong way to be a woman.”
5. Combating the voices of hate, fencer Ibtihaj Muhammad won a bronze medal in the Rio Olympics and became the first Muslim-American woman to wear a hijab while competing for the U.S. This year, Barbie recognized her for her messages of self-love, equality and inclusion with her own Barbie Shero doll. (Shero = she hero). Her doll is the first-ever Barbie to wear a hijab.
Keep the conversation going
Need a little something for small talk before today’s big meeting? Here’s what everyone is buzzing about including a remarkable women’s basketball team, the most controversial ending in Bachelor history and why an NBA player is encouraging everyone to go see a therapist. READ